Decorative coating machine



Jan. 21, 1969 E, FABER 3,422,794

DECORAT IVE COAT ING MACHINE Filed June l5. 1967 Sheet of 5 INVENTOR.' .ELA/IER L. FABER.

Jan. 21, 1969 E. l.. FABER I DECORATIVE COATINGl MACHINE Sheet Filed June l5, 1967 NVENTORI ELA/IER L. FABER.

Jan. 21, 1969 E, FABER DECORATIVE COATING MACHINE Sheet Filed June l5, 1967 7&1

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United States Patent O 3,422,794 DECORATIVE COATING MACHINE Elmer L. Faber, Toledo, Ohio, assignor to Deco Tools, Inc., Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed June 15, 1967, Ser. No. 646,409 U.S. Cl. 118-301 8 Claims Int. Cl. Bb 15/04; B05c 5/00; B051) 3/ 00 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A decorative coating machine for use in the decorative coating of, for example, the border of a non-circular object such as the frame which surrounds the picture tube of a television set. The machine includes a decorative painting fixture which has a platform for supporting a workpiece in a predetermined lhorizontal position. A generally ring shaped plate member is mounted in 'vertically spaced relationship above the workpiece platform. The plate member defines a continuous guide slot in its upper surface. A vertical power shaft extends downwardly through a center opening in the plate member and terminates above the workpiece platform. A follower assembly is mounted adjacent the plate member and includes at least one tracking cam which is positioned within the continuous guide slot of the cam member. A vertical g'un post is carried by the follower assembly and mounts at least one spray gun adjacent its lower end. The g-un post and the vertical power shaft are parallel to one another and are interconnected by a pair of horizontal power transfer bars. The power transfer bars are slidably mounted and the distance between the -gun post and the power shaft varies as lthe follower assembly traverses the guide path defined by the continuous guide slot in the plate member.

Background of the invention One of the difficulties in the prior artt has been the decorative painting of non-circular borders, for example a rectangular border, or a border which is non-symmetrical.

`Even thou-gh other decorative painting operations have been mechanized, this type of operation has been performed largely by the use of hand held spray guns.

Summary of the invention The invention provides apparatus for the decorative paintin-g of, for example a non-circular border. The present apparatus provides spray gun mechanism which not only traverses a desired spray path to adequately coat the workpiece, but also moves the spray guns in a smooth and nonvibratory manner.

The present invention, comprises a decorative coating machine which includes means for supporting a workpiece in a predetermined painting position. At least one spray gun is mounted in spaced relationship to the workpiece platform. Means are provided for guiding the spray guns in a non-circular path, including a plate member which is spaced from the workpiece supporting means. The plate member defines a continuous guide path. Follower means are positioned adjacent the plate member for movement along the continuous guide path. The follower means are operatively connected to the spray gun so that the spray gun is guided through the desired non-circular spray path, as the follower means moves along the guide path defined by the plate member.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide an improved decorative coating machine particularly adapted for the decorative painting of non-circular paths, rings, or irregular paths.

Patented Jan. 21, 1969 ICC Brief description of the drawings FIG. l is a perspective view of a decorative coating machine according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the position of the spray guns as they coat a worypiece;

FIG. 3 is a front view of a portion of the machine shown in FIG. 1, drawn on an enlarged scale, and having portions of the housing removed to show the interior components;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3 and showing in dashed lines successive positions of the follower means; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view taken along the line 5 5 of FIG. 4, shown on an enlarged scale.

Description of the preferred embodiment A decorative coating machine, according to the present invention, is generally indicated in FIG. l by the reference number 10. The decorative coating machine includes a housing 11 having sides 12 and 13, an upper compartment 14, and a spraying section 15. Immediately behind the spraying section 15 is an exhaust passageway 16 leading to a spray painting exhaust system (not shown).

The upper compartment 14 has an entrance door 17, which preferably includes a series of vertically spaced louvers 18.

sReferring to FIG. 3, power means, [generally indicated by the reference number 20, are located within the upper compartment 14 of the housing 11. The power means 20 includes a motor 21 which is mounted on an equipment platform 22. A speed red-uction unit 23 is also mounted on the equipment platform 22 and a pulley 24 interconnects the motor 21 and the speed reduction unit 23. A gear 25 is mounted on the output shaft of the speed reduction unit 23 and enga-ges a meshing -gear 26 which is mounted on a central rotatable power shaft 27.

The power shaft 27 is journaled within mounting bearings 28 and 29 which are located on opposed sides of the equipment platform 22. A -three passage rotary assembly 30 is mounted adjacent the upper end of the power shaft 27 to supply paint, triggering air and atomizinig air to a plurality of vertically extending passageways (not shown) which are defined within the rotatable power shaft 27. The power shaft 27 has a vertical axis, which is indicated in F IG. 3 by the reference number 31.

Referring to FIG. l, means for supporting a workpiece are generally indicated by the reference number 35. The workpiece support means 35 includes a wonkpiece fixture 36 which is attached to a structural member 37. The structural member 37 extends between the opposed sides 12 and 13 of the housing 11.

The workpiece fixture 36 includes uprights 38 and 39 which are connected -at their lower ends by a cross member 40. The upper ends of the uprights 38 and 39 support a mask holding frame 41. A cylinder 42 is mounted beneath the cross member 40 and has a vertical rod 43 extending through an opening in the cross member 40. The cylinder rod 43 mounts a horizontally disposed workpiece platform 44 at its upper end. Operating fluid is supplied to the cylinder 42 through a conduit 45.

Spray gun guiding means `are indicated by the 4reference number 49. In the present embodiment, the spray gun guiding means 49 comprises a rectangular plate 50 having an elongated central opening 51 and an upper horizontally disposed surface 52. The plate member 50 is vertically spaced Iabove the horizontally disposed mask holding frame 41 of the workpiece fixture 36 and is supported `by four corner posts 53 which depend from the equipment platform 22. In the present embodiment, the power shaft 27 is perpendicularly disposed with respect to the upper surface 52 of the plate member 50 and the shaft 27 is located at the intersection of the horizontal centerlines of the plate member 50 (see FIG. 4).

A continuous cam groove or slot 54 is provided in the upper surface 52 of the cam plate 50. The cam slot 54 serves as a continuous guide path.

Follower means, generally indicated by the reference number 55, are mounted adjacent the plate member 50. In the present embodiment, the follower means 55 includes a cam block 56 which is threadably attached to the upper end of a gun post 57. During normal operation, there is no relative movement between the cam block 56 and the gun post 7, however, a nut 58 may be loosened and the cam block 56 may be moved vertically along the gun post 57 if a change in vertical elevation of the block 56 is desired.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cam block 56 mounts on its lower surface a spaced pair of tracking cams S9 which are positioned within the cam slot 54. The tracking cams 59 guide the cam block 56 and the gun post 57 in a non-circular spray path. A pair of bearing rollers 60 extend outwardly from the cam block 56 and rest upon the upper surface 52 of the plate member 50. In the present embodiment, the bearing rollers 60 support the weight of the cam block 56 and the apparatus components which depend therefrom.

A gun post block 63 is mounted on the gun post 57 below the cam block 56. The gun post 57 extends through a bore 64 and is journaled by a pair of coaxial ball bearings (not shown). A pair of opposed adjusting nuts 65 are positioned on opposed sides of the gun post block 63 to retain the block 63 in its proper vertical elevation. The gun post 57 may at all times rotate relative to the block 63.

In the present embodiment, a rod 66 is secured adjacent the bottom of the gun post 57 and mounts atomizing air type spray guns 67 and 68. The spray guns 67 and 68 are in communication with the paint, triggering air, and atomizing air passageways within the power shaft 27 through flexible conduits (not shown). The spray guns 67 and 68 are mounted in vertically spaced relationship with respect to a workpiece which is in painting position, as shown by the dashed line position 44a in FIG. 3. While the spray guns 67 and 68 have been described as atomizing air type spray guns, they may also be, for example, either electrostatic spray guns or high pressure liquid spray guns.

A power transfer block 70, having -a pair of parallel horizontal bores 72 and 73 extending therethrough, is attached to the adjacent lower end of the power shaft 27, by a key 74. Bearings 75 are positioned within the bores 72 and 73 (see FIG. 5) and slidably receive a pair of slide bars 76 and 77 respectively. The bars 76 and 77 are threaded at one end and are secured to the gun post block 63. The slide bars 76 and 77 serve as power transfer links to transfer force from the power shaft 27 to the follower means 55.

Referring to FIG. 4, as the power shaft 27 rotates, its rotative force is transferred to the follower means 55 by the slide bars 76 and 77. The cam block 56 moves in a counterclockwise direction and is guided in its movement by the tracking cams 59 which are positioned within the cam slot 54. As the cam block 56 moves to the dashed line position indicated by the reference number 56a (see FIG. 4), the slide bars 76 and 77 move outwardly with respect to the power transfer block 70 as the horizontal distance -between the power shaft 27 and the gun post S7 increases. As the cam block 56a turns a corner (see FIG. 4), a relative rotative movement occurs between the gun post 57 and the gun post block 63. Similarly, as the follower means 55 continues its counterclockwise movement and the cam block 56 approaches the dashed line position 56b, the slide bars 76 and 77 move rearwardly with respect to the power transfer block 70, ras the horizontal spacing between the power shaft 27 and the gun post 57 is reduced. It has been found that the embodiment of the apparatus shown in the drawings provides a very smooth and efficient means for moving the spray guns 67 and 68 through a predetermined spray path. However, it should be noted that the functions of the cam block 56 and the gun post block 63 may be combined without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In one embodiment of the invention the rotative speed of the power shaft 27 is controlled to compensate for the differences in peripheral speed of the spray guns which results from the lengthening and shortening of the distance between the power shaft 27 and the gun post 57. Referring to FIG. 4, in this embodiment, as the cam block 56 moves from the full line position to the dashed line position 56a, the speed of the power shaft 27 is reduced. Similarly, the speed of the shaft 27 is increased -as the cam block 56a moves to the dashed line position 56b. By adjusting the speed of the power shaft 27, it is possible to maintain a constant peripheral speed, thereby moving the spray guns 67 and 68 through their non-circular spray path at a uniform rate of travel.

One means of regulating the speed of the shaft 27 is through the use of a series of potentiometers which are placed in the electrical circuit of the motor 21. The potentiometers are placed into the circuit and removed from the circuit at predetermined intervals as the distance between the shaft 27 `and the gun post 57 increases or decreases. The speed of the motor 21 and the power shaft 27 is thereby varied. Normally, it is not necessary to employ the above described control system unless there is a substantial variance in the spacing between the shaft 27 and the gun post 57 as the spray guns 67 and 68 traverse their spray path.

In a normal decorative painting operation, using the decorative coating machine 10, a workpiece 80, for example a television picture tube frame, is positioned on the workpiece platform 44 (see FIG. l). The cylinder 42 is actuated and the workpiece platform 44 moves upwardly into mating relationship with the mask holding frame 41. At this time, the motor 21 is energized and the power shaft 27 begins to rotate. Simultaneously, the spray guns 67 and 68 are activated. The tracking cams 59 follow the cam slot 54 in the plate member 50 and the spray guns 67 and 68 move through the continuous spray path applying paint to the unmasked portions of the workpiece 80. After the spray guns 67 and 68 traverse the spray path a predetermined number of times, the spray guns 67 and 68 are deactivated, the motor 21 is de-energized and the cylinder 52 moves the work platform 44 downwardly. At this time, the workpiece 80 is removed and replaced by another workpiece. It has been found that the decorative coating machine 10 can decoratively paint television frames at a rate of frames per hour.

I claim:

1. A decorative coating machine comprising, in combination, a decorative painting xture having a platform for supporting a workpiece to be painted in a predetermined horizontal position, a plate member having a central opening mounted in vertically spaced relationship above such predetermined position, said plate member defining in its upper surface a continuous guide slot, a vertical power shaft adjacent to and spaced above said painting fixture, drive means for rotating said power shaft, la follower assembly mounted adjacent said plate member, said follower assembly including at least one cam member positioned within such continuous guide slot, and a vertical gun post carried by said follower assembly, said gun post extending through such central opening being horizontally spaced from said power shaft, at least one power transfer link operatively connected between said gun post and said power shaft, and at least one spray gun mounted adjacent said gun post in spaced relationship with said platform of said painting fixture.

2. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 1, said workpiece fixture having a mask holding frame and a workpiece platform mounted below said mask holding frame, said workpiece platform and said mask holding frame being movable relative to one another into and out of a mating relationship.`

3. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 1, wherein said power shaft extends through such central opening in said plate member, including a gun post block positioned on said gun post, a power transfer block mounted on said power shaft, said power transfer block defining therethrough at least one horizontal bearing bore, and wherein said power transfer link comprises at least one slide bar which has one end slidably mounted within such bore of said power transfer block and its opposite end secured to said gun post block.

4. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 3, wherein said power transfer block denes two parallel horizontal bearing bores which slidably receive two parallel slide bars, said bars being secured at one end to said gun post block.

5. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 4, wherein said follower assembly includes at least one bearing roller which engages such upper surface of said plate member and means for moving said gun post at a constant peripheral speed.

6. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 1, wherein such central opening in said plate member is noncircular and wherein such continuous guide slot is spaced a predetermined distance from the periphery of such central opening.

7. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 1, wherein said follower assembly includes at least one bearing member which engages `such upper surface of said plate member.

8. A decorative coating machine, according to claim 1, including a rod mounted adjacent the lower end of said gun post, and a pair of spray guns adjustably mounted on said rod.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,281,169 4/1942 Pattison 11s-323x 3,039,431 6/1962 wayeiai 11s-301 3,282,247 11/1966 Ralphs 118-323 WALTER A. SCHEEL, Primary Examiner.

JOHN P. MCINTOSH, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. l 18-323 

